It’s no secret that work culture in Europe is a lot different from what it is in the United States. Europeans often get more time off and work fewer hours overall. Even so, you have to really live there to understand just how different things are.
Justyn Lee is doing exactly that. He is an American living and working in Paris, and even he was surprised after moving there to discover a few new things about the work culture. One major takeaway? In France, the month of May barely exists.
American living in Paris explains “le pont”
In a LinkedIn post, Lee explains that France has four official holidays in the month of May. That’s kind of a lot, but not totally unusual compared to what Americans are used to. In November, we have Veterans Day and Thanksgiving, while in January there’s New Year’s Day and Martin Luther King Jr. Day. In France, there’s Labour Day, Victory in Europe Day, Ascension Thursday, and Whit Monday.
However, he notes that “France does not operate on days. It operates on proximity.”
Lee then explains something called “le pont,” which means “the bridge.” Whenever a holiday, or a day off from work, lands in the middle of the week, most companies just go ahead and make “the days in between disappear.”
Americans are familiar with “the bridge” in a few scenarios. Most businesses are closed the Friday after Thanksgiving, for example. But in France, while it’s not legally mandated, it’s culturally accepted that most holidays turn into a four-day weekend.
Lee says people take this opportunity to travel, go on vacation, or rest, only occasionally checking in on work. “Let’s circle back in June” is a common refrain.
“May is not a month,” he writes. “C’est la vie.”
It’s not just France that likes to stretch its holiday weekends
The concept of “bridge holidays” is almost universal across European and Latin American work cultures. It exists under different names in France, Germany (Brückentage), Spain (hacer puente), Brazil (imprensar/emendar/enforcar), and more.
There are tons of reasons for this extremely liberal vacation policy. European and Latin American countries have strong labor unions that protect workers’ rights, and most have universal healthcare, which lowers the economic pressures associated with working.
Though bridge holidays and large amounts of paid time off are not completely universal, the U.S. does seem to be in the minority by not participating.
How do countries like France keep the “trains running,” so to speak, in the month of May and other months full of holidays? Essential services are often still open, as are shops and small businesses in big cities like Paris. Tourism workers may not get such an extended break at the same time, since everyone is vacationing. But otherwise, typical office workers have a cultural agreement that non-urgent emails and meetings can simply…wait.
Europeans chime in with a knowing nod
Lee’s post struck a chord on LinkedIn, where dozens of commenters were eager to share their thoughts.
“Love this post!” Marta Pastoriza Ares commented. “Haha Something veeery similar happens in Spain as well, and we also call it ‘hacer puente’ (bridging those bank holidays with the days ‘in between’). A culture trait I refuse to leave behind. Not ever!”
“Very similar approach in Brazil when it comes to holidays,” Carolina O. Fraiel said. “We call it ‘imprensar’ (to squeeze), ’emendar’ (to connect) and ‘enforcar’ (to choke). And all it means is that people hope for holidays on Tuesdays and Thursdays to make the most of it.”
“Very, very similar in Germany, we even also call those days between holidays and weekends ‘Brückentage’ (bridge days),” Alexander Lichanow said. “I would love to see US hustlebros froth and fume over this blatant disregard for grind culture.”
Shahana Shaikh was fascinated by the unwritten rules in action: “Interesting how work culture isn’t just rules it’s the unwritten norms people quietly follow. Sometimes, without anything being formally announced, everyone just aligns around a shared rhythm. It shows that culture isn’t what’s written in policy, but what people actually practice every day.”
And finally, Tim McNerney drew a humorous parallel to life in the U.S.: “European AE: Right guys, it’s July 31st. I’ll see you in September. Out of office is on. Leaving my work laptop at home. Don’t try and contact me. American AE: kidney surgery is tomorrow. Bring the docusigns by my bed, and I’ll make sure we get the red lines covered before they put me under. I should be good for the on-site the next morning too.”
Americans in the comments were a bit flabbergasted to learn the meaning behind “le pont.” But would bridge holidays even work in America?
Without federally mandated paid time off and some major changes to the cultural infrastructure, probably not. Americans also tend to get higher salaries than their European counterparts, and they like it that way.
But that’s not to say that it’s all doom and gloom for overworked Americans.
After COVID-19 and the work-from-home boom, many workers have found themselves with more flexibility than their office jobs previously allowed. In addition to formal “bridges” around Thanksgiving and Christmas, it’s become more normal for workplaces to be “quiet” around the holidays or during certain stretches of the summer.
This understanding could become even more normalized in the coming years.
The key thing that makes it work in France, though, is the social contract. There’s an unspoken agreement that life is more important than work, and things that aren’t urgent are sometimes going to have to wait. It’s an approach that we could, and probably should, adopt a little more of here at home.
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